Concerning: Bets, Materia, and Scavenger Hunts
by applesaucex
Summary: For the WRO's third anniversary, a bet has been established for the heroes of Gaia to go materia hunting around the globe. But the materia hunt isn't the only thing going on between the teams...Rated T because Cid isn't censored.  Cloti. Yuffentine.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:**

**So before I post my crossover, I decided to write something FF7 based. This will probably be a short series of sorts (maybe long...but probably not too long...oh me and my bipolar writing ideas). Anyway, if you like 7, you should read it and enjoy :D I'll get started on chapter 2, and if this goes over well, I'll post my crossover soon-ish.**

**Disclaimer: if I could own any video game, it'd be ff7, but I don't own any video games. boo. and even the plot line is a little amazing race (which I've never seen but anyway..) ish. but hey, I wrote this story so it's all good.**

**Oh and this is (probably) post DoC, but I tend to ignore that DoC ever happened (basically because I have no idea what to do with Shelke...)  
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Edge was wild. The usual grey and white city was suddenly filled with an assortment of colors. People could be heard laughing and skipping through the streets, taking in the fun filled day with pure eagerness. Red and purple and orange balloons floated through the light blue sky as another string was pulled.

"Denzel! Denzel, stop!" She ran up to the little boy, brown hair flying back in the gentle warm breeze. "What are you doing?"

His blue eyes blinked innocently. "Marlene wanted one." He gave a large grin as he pointed to the green balloon in his hand. "But I kept on getting the wrong colors so I had to keep going until I got the right one, right Tifa?"

"…just." Tifa patted his head. "Try not to ruin all of the decorations. Reeve put a lot of effort into making this for all of us." She straightened up. "It's an important day for him."

Denzel shrugged, "The anniversary, right? Why can't I join the WRO?"

"Because we need you at home!" Tifa gave him a quick smile and pushed him forward. "Well go and give Marlene the balloon. Cloud's making a speech soon."

"Hehe, who volunteered him for that one?"

Tifa's eyes moved from the little boy to the voice behind her, "…You did Yuffie, remember?" Her voice became flat as her eyes popped back up the teenager's stare.

"Oh! Hehe, yeah…well it'll be entertaining to see ol' Strifey try anyway." The ninja gave her an amused shrug and sauntered forward towards the martial artist. "Sooo Teef, how is life in your little happy family unit?"

Tifa blinked, "It's fine. The kids are going to school; the delivery service and the bar are going well…I can't complain." _Except…_

"Sounds boring if you ask me." Yuffie leaned back on her own hands. "I can't stay put in one place too long. The old man wanted me to go to Wutai…you know, train to be a princess…that kinda thing, but why would I do that when I can do the most ridiculous things across Gaia!" She gave a quick laugh, much to Tifa's dismay.

It wasn't as if she _liked _the world being in utter peril, but she had to admit that while they were off stopping Sephiroth or the Remnants there was a certain rush, a certain excitement. Now everything was routine. She'd clean the bar, check the balances, make sure Cloud had all of his deliveries in order, pack the kids lunches, send them to school, serve the customers…over and over and over again. It was so mundane, so, as Yuffie put it, _boring._ _What happened?_

Ever since she left Nibelheim, she strived to have a normal life, make a living for herself and settle down with someone. And now that all of that was finally falling into place_…at least most of it…_she found herself wanting something else. "I mean…I _shouldn't _complain."

"You mean, it's not paradise back at 7th Heaven?" Yuffie's grin widened at her self-made pun. "Is Strife still being a dumby about you guys? Because just say the word and I'll tell…"

"No! It's nothing like that! Cloud's fine…"

The ninja rolled her eyes, "Psh."

Tifa ignored the action, "Yuffie, there's nothing going on between us…for the fiftieth time. And it's just…I don't know, I guess I admire you."

The younger girl's eyes popped open, "…err what?"

"You still get to travel, to have adventures. I guess I didn't realize how much I missed that." _She's helping Gaia while I'm mixing drinks. _It was never really her idea to start up a bar again. Although she didn't mind it too much back in the slums of Midgar, after Meteorfall, she knew she could make a difference, a greater impact in the world than giving tours and handing out alcohol.

Yuffie flipped back her hair, "Yup, yup! Living the life. That's just how I roll…Come on!" She grabbed Tifa's hand suddenly and dragged her through the crowd and towards the small platform in front of the newly reconstructed Meteorfall monument. "Your Cloudy-poo is gonna speak soon."

The martial artist's head dropped. _Cloudy-poo? _"I hope he isn't nervous."

"Psh, Cloud talking for more than 10 seconds? Why should he be nervous?" Yuffie stopped her pulling force and suddenly stopped, front and center. "Yup, perfect spot!"

Tifa eyed the crowd around her, already seeing the masses start to form in front of the makeshift stage. Cloud was on the opposite end of the platform, sitting on the edge, his back turned away from the audience. She gazed briefly at his light blond hair, barely moving in the light brush of the wind. He fidgeted gently as a taller men bent down and touched his shoulder, a signal that the speech was about to begin.

The blond moved his body up and walked slowly to the front of the stage. His arms swayed numbly at his sides, and his head remained unfocused on the imposing group of people in front of him. There was a series of loud whispers scattered throughout the crowd, parents calling for the kids to keep quiet and muffled voices of confusion. "Um…hey." Cloud scratched the back of his head as he moved up to the microphone. "I'm Cloud Strife…and Reeve here asked me to say a little something. I guess he got tired of giving all the speeches." There was slight laughter from the crowd, feeding off of Cloud's nervous energy more than his humor. "So I got stuck with this job…can't say I'm really used to speeches. I'm not the best at public speaking."

"Understatement of the century," the young ninja muttered next to Tifa.

Cloud glanced down at her, but caught Tifa's reassuring glance instead. He continued, "I guess…I guess I can consider this more of a pep talk…something I've done before. You see, we'd all be nothing without the WRO." Cloud paused, "But then again, the WRO would be nothing without us either, no offense Reeve." There were more scattered laughs, and Cloud raised his hand to continue, "And…I guess what I'm trying to say…in probably one of the most convoluted ways, is that this celebration isn't just for the WRO. It's for everyone here on Gaia. It's because of all of our efforts, not just Reeve or mine or AVALANCHE's, that we've made it this far. And we'll move on even further, without Shinra or Mako."

There was another pause, but no sound was made by the audience or Cloud. Finally, after a brief period of awkwardness, the blond gave a shy smile, "…um, I guess that's all I really planned to say…thanks." Cloud gave a slight wave and turned his back to the stage, an uproar of applause trailing behind him.

Yuffie gave a mild clap, "Come on, he wasn't that good."

"For Cloud he was." Tifa wasn't clapping, only smiling. It was just her natural reaction. Her dark eyes watched as the blond hopped off the stage, ignoring the congratulatory pats of numerous WRO workers. He walked up to the young woman, soft smile fading.

"It was bad, wasn't it?"

"I'll say!" Yuffie jumped between them, "Don't quit your day job."

His Mako eyes glanced briefly at the ninja before turning to Tifa, "Reeve wants to talk to us."

She only nodded, looking past her confusion, "Um, alright. Did he say why?"

Cloud only shrugged and walked around the stage. "No." He led Tifa (and the always persistent Yuffie) to a large round table located behind the makeshift stage. "Where's Denzel?"

"With Marlene and Barret. Don't worry." She smirked a bit.

Cloud didn't answer, but gestured for her to sit down, next to a note taking Reeve. The older man glanced up from his notepad, then looked back down after turning a couple of pages. "Ah Tifa! Just the person I wanted to see."

She sat down as Cloud suggested, "…So Cloud has told me. You have a mission for us?" She had waited for this. It had been a while since she had done anything _active _for the WRO. The martial artist in her craved for adventure, for energy. She was starved of adrenaline. Tifa attempted to hide her excitement, hiding her anticipation by tapping the table ruthlessly.

"Not exactly."

_Oh. _Her hands stopped and her back straightened.

"It's more like a hunt."

Her eyes narrowed, "…Excuse me?"

"I need help finding …." Reeve's voice slowed, "…Something specific."

"Like what exactly?"

The head of the WRO glanced briefly at Yuffie before continuing, "….Materia."

"Materia!? You mean, you want us to find _more _materia caves? You and your silly robot were there when we took it all." The ninja hovered her right hand over her left arm, un-equipping the shiny green gem. "And there is _no_ way you're touching any of mine or Wutai's."

Reeve held up his hands innocently, "No, no! Of course not. I want Cloud's."

The blond raised an eyebrow, "My materia's gone."

"Yeah…because you let the crazy triplets steal it…" Yuffie grunted and turned around.

Reeve ignored Yuffie's annoyed façade and faced the martial artist. "I've heard from Marlene that you saw it in the church?"

Tifa nodded, "Yeah…Loz must have taken it after he knocked me out, but what took you so long to ask me?"

The head of the WRO smile at this and went through his suit pocket, pulling out a thin piece of white paper. "Well, it took some planning..."

Cloud narrowed his eyes at this, "Planning? For all of us?"

"Yes, all of AVALANCHE. Ah here they come now!"

Tifa turned to where Reeve was directed, seeing Barret walk over with Cid, Red XIII, and Cait Sith. She smiled seeing them all together like this, all happy. "Hey guys!"

"Teef!" Cid walked over and gave her a solid embrace, "Looking good as always."

Cloud coughed a little, "How's Shera, Cid?"

"Perfect. Watching the youngsters as we speak. Now why did I need to fucking talk to you Reeve?"

The head of the WRO didn't talk right away. He bent over, picking up Cait Sith from Red's back and smirked, "Why don't you all follow me?"

"I don't like where this is going…" Yuffie slipped next to Tifa as the crowd of heroes began to follow Reeve.

Tifa shrugged, "He only wants us to find materia, Yuffie." _I'd think she would be happy about that_…

Reeve stopped and turned around in one of the quieter alleys in Edge. The air was a lot quieter here, and it only managed to build up Tifa's curiosity. "In honor of the 3 year anniversary of the WRO, my employees and I would all like you to conduct in a little…bet of ours."

Yuffie coughed, "Excuse me? A bet? And why wasn't I in on this??"

"I agree with the runt. I could go for some extra cash." Cid lit up a cigarette, "And what the hell did you guys bet on anyway?"

Reeve went through the inner pockets of his suit and pulled out a piece of paper. "It's simple really. It just involves the little mission I mentioned earlier to you all. Only we decided to make things a little more…interesting." He held the piece of paper up to his face. "We have a little office pool to see who can find the most materia."

"Haha really? "That's way too easy." Yuffie grinned but then crossed her arms suspiciously, "…what's the catch?"

"No catch! We even decided to make things a little easier by pairing you guys into teams."

"Oh! Shot not Cloud!"

The young blond gave the ninja a stern glare but just sighed, knowing it was better not to argue.

_Teams_? Tifa looked around to everyone else, not really sure what kind of game Reeve was trying to play. As much as she wanted to just drop everything and go on an adventure, in reality, she couldn't. She had a bar to run, a kid to look after. There was no way she could just leave it all. And Cloud too. Who would take over the delivery service while they were gone? She had to ask, "Reeve, it's a nice idea I guess, but…"

"Don't worry about the 7th Heaven, Tifa. I asked Shera to look after it and Denzel for you."

"What? My Shera agreed to that? Well this is just bullshit. Don't I have an airship division to run?" Cid exhaled a cloud of smoke, "Hell if I'm walking around this damn planet again."

"Oh shut up, old man." Yuffie jumped up and smiled, almost menacingly, probably a little too excited at the prospect of materia. "This is gonna be great. But what about Vinnie, Reeve?"

Reeve checked his watch, "He said he'd be here in a little while, but first I should check if all of you agree to this."

Tifa nodded, letting her optimistic side takeover. Forgetting her routine for a while would do her some good, but there was still one very important question, "So should we pick our partner now?"

At this Reeve's smile fell, obviously a little worried at the group's next reaction. "Well…the thing is, the WRO thought it would be more interesting if we picked them."

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**A/N:**

**Not really such a cliffhanger ending... but I wanted to stop there to get your opinions (YES YOU). I'm curious to see what teams you would like to see, and if you would like me to talk about all the teams (or maybe just a select few because that could get long and monotonous). I already have pairings (in two ways...) in my head, but I still want to hear your thoughts :D**

**coughreviewcough. It definitely won't make me update faster (...sarcasm).  
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**-ASX  
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	2. Chapter 2

A/N:

I like this concept. So I'm continuing this story, despite the lack of reviews. And I'll keep writing it until my brain decides it's over. I want to thank _PhsycopathicHeartbeat _for reviewing :D It got me started on this story again.

And thanks to everyone who reads!

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There was a collective silence between everyone at that moment. Even Red XIII, who was usually calm and collected, seemed to be nervous at the idea that their partner was already handpicked for them. Tifa stiffened at the thought herself. It wasn't like she didn't get along with anyone in their group; she just would have preferred someone rather specific…

"Oh God. Please not Yuffie."

The ninja hit the pilot in retort.

"I assure you that none of you are being forced into this situation at all. If for any reason…"

"Well hell then, I'm out."

Reeve blinked, "Already Cid?"

"Hell yes, already. Me and Shera got some other stuff to deal with."

Yuffie sniffed, "Like what? Gotta build another useless fleet?"

The older pilot just grumbled, "And besides. I rather get in on this action than be the horses you're betting on."

"Well…I guess I'll just take Cait Sith out and move Cid's partner to Cait Sith's…"

Cloud was losing patience, "Reeve, can you just tell us?"

"Now wait, I don't like leaving Marlene again. If Cid's out, I'm getting out too." Barret crossed his arms in pure determination.

Reeve sighed, "This is turning out well…but okay Barret…then I'll put Cait Sith back in with…"

"Oh! Barret, you can take Denzel too, can't you? He misses Marlene."

"Yeah, yeah. Sure, Teef. Want me to take them to Gold Saucer? It'll be a nice little…"

"HEY!"

Barret stopped talking, seeing the short ninja become a little red from the sudden outburst. Yuffie straightened out her tube top and placed her hands on her hips, obviously a little frustrated. "If you don't mind, I'm kind of really curious who I am going to be trekking around the world with, am I right Chocobo Head?"

He didn't comment, but he couldn't help his eyes flash in a certain someone's direction for a split second. Yuffie continued, "So…if you all could just SHUT UP and stop dropping out, maybe we could let Reeve finish, okay?"

The group simultaneously nodded, still shocked that Yuffie actually put so much interest into this little hunt. Cloud shrugged to himself. _Must be the materia._

Reeve smiled, obviously pleased he would get to continue. "Thank you, Yuffie. Okay. Since Cid and Barret have dropped out, that still leaves us with an even number. Now, I think the teams will try to be as fair as possible, so Nanaki, if you don't mind taking Cait Sith since he can't really move well on his own."

Red XIII nodded, "Of course. Cait Sith has accompanied me before. It'd be an honor to work with you again, Reeve."

"Hey, Hey! Is that really fair, Reeve? You control Cait Sith, and you're the one making this hunt!"

"I assure you I don't know where any of the materia is, hence the reason for this hunt."

The obviousness shut the ninja up quickly, "Right…anyway…continue."

"Yuffie, I thought it would be best if I paired you with…"

"Vinnie!"

Reeve narrowed his eyes at what he was clearly not going to say, but soon realized that the ninja wasn't suggesting the idea, but simply noticed that the red caped man was approaching them, gun holster and Cerberus still at his side. She continued towards him and even gave the dark man a quick hug. "…Yuffie."

"Glad you could make it Vince! Reeve is apparently sending us on some sort of hunt."

Vincent nodded, "So I've heard." His red eyes flashed to the WRO commissioner. "I hear you have a partner for me?"

"Right, yes. Now if I can finally finish, I decided to put you with Cloud."

The blond could hear the ninja's jaw crack. "No, no. I was the first not to shotty the angsty boy."

"I think he meant me, Yuffie." Vincent's deep voice replied.

That relieved Cloud a little. Sure, Vincent wouldn't have been his first choice, but it would have been a lot easier than going on a materia hunt with Yuffie. Reeve was smiling to himself. "Yes, it can be like a 'boys vs. girls' hunt. Sound fun?"

Yuffie didn't look pleased at all. Her face twisted from her energetic smile into a distorted grimace. Cloud didn't exactly know what was going on with the ninja, but she wasn't too thrilled to have Tifa as a partner for one thing. Though Tifa just smiled towards Yuffie, "This will be fun, won't it Yuffie?"

"Yeah, yeah, Teef. Real great." She directed her attention back to the WRO commissioner. "Those teams final?"

He ignored the question. "Let's meet at WRO headquarters a week from today, okay? Whoever has the most materia wins the prize."

Tifa blinked, "What prize?"

"That's still to be determined. Good luck! You can begin the hunt as soon as the party ends!" Reeve gave one last pat to Cait Sith and placed the robotic cat on Red XIII's back before walking back to his employees.

Cloud didn't know what to say. It was all kind of sudden…this quest…if it even could be called that. _It's more like a game_. And he wasn't exactly sure he had time for games. He was finally settling into his life here in Edge. No more reasons to feel guilty or run away. He was finally ready to just live at home with Denzel and Tifa like a proper family. _Well as close as I'm going to get anyway. _

But he was also slightly worried about his materia. Even the simple Fire and Ices could be incredibly dangerous at the Master level. He should get them back, and they would be handy if he ever had to deal with any other sort of crazy Jenova/Shinra enemy again. _Let's hope not._

"You don't mind stopping the delivery service for a while?"

He turned to see Tifa, with only a slight look of concern on her face. Cloud shook his head, "I could use a vacation. Though I imagined it a little differently." He couldn't exactly tell _her_ what his ideal vacation would be. Her and him alone on the beach somewhere quiet and far away may give his long friend the wrong impression. "What about you and the bar?"

"I don't mind at all. I'm kind of looking forward to it, as long as Denzel doesn't mind."

"It's only a week, Tifa."

"Yeah, he'll be fine, I know. And this could be fun…exploring Gaia again."

He hadn't thought about that. Cloud got to travel a lot for his deliveries, but Tifa's been in Edge for a while. That must have been quite different from their adventures a couple of years earlier. "Yeah…it will be…"

"Teef! Can I talk to you? Make a game plan?" Yuffie soon grabbed her hand, tugging the martial artist away from the blond. "You two can flirt later. I have business to discuss." She gave a toothy grin before dragging Tifa away.

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"…You think I'll be a bad partner?"

"No, it's not that Tifa. I just…I'm doing _you_ a favor. See?"

She didn't quite understand. Well, yeah, she understood, but she thought that her constant denial towards the situation would be a sort of hint to the ninja that she didn't really want anyone finding out. Okay, so maybe it was obvious by the way she looked at him or how she acted around him, that yeah, she had a _slight_ crush on Cloud. "You don't need to do this, Yuffie. I see Cloud every day. One week together isn't going to be that much different."

"Oh! But it will be. Just picture it." She raised her hand for dramatic effect, "You and Chocobo Head, winding across the desert on that stupid bike of his, sleeping together under the stars…or _not _sleeping if you get my drift. Just you two. Alone. No children to stop you guys from finally breaking that barrier you're too afraid to cross."

"It's really okay, Yuffie. I want to spend time with you too. And me and Cloud…" She shook her head a little. "Yeah, sure. Maybe I thought we stood a chance after Geostigma, but it's been a while and nothing's happened. We're the same. We'll always be the same." Tifa smiled, but she could feel herself cracking already, "And that's okay. I've accepted that now. I think it'd be fun if just the two of us could just go out and have some…"

"No."

That answer shocked her. Yuffie's tone was so firm and so serious, so incredibly unlike her. "What?"

The ninja twisted her hands together and sighed. Her dark eyes glanced up to Tifa and then back to the ground. "Can you keep a secret?"

She smirked, "What do you think I've been doing?"

"Ah, touché." Yuffie looked around, but no one at the party seemed to be paying any attention to them. "Look...I may have a little tiny secret too."

Tifa felt herself smile and her mouth fall open a little. _Whoa_. "Really, Yuffie?

"Yeah…probably not as long as your little crush but…"

"Aw, Yuffie. It's cute that you like Vincent."

Her face immediately paled. "…you know?"

"Why else would you want to switch partners?" _She likes Vincent? How does she expect that one to turn out?_ But then again, she couldn't exactly put it past Yuffie. She could be…convincing at times. "You want any help with him?"

"Well, um, wanna let me borrow your boobs for a couple of days?" Yuffie sighed, seeing Tifa's un-amused expression. "You're not exactly the best at getting guys, Teef."

She felt a little insulted at that. "I've been asked out plenty of times, Yuffie."

"Yeah, but never by someone you like, right? I got this one, Teef, but thanks."

Tifa couldn't help but laugh, "You got this? You know it's _Vincent _we're talking about, right? He's been in love with Lucrecia for over 30 years, Yuffie."

"Yeah, oh and where was Cloud all those months before? In who's church?"

Her bitter tone caused Tifa to cringe back a little, "…Okay, I get it Yuffs. I shouldn't have said anything."

"I mean, it's not completely bizarre is it? I do make him laugh…sometimes. And he's really not all that much older…"

"If anyone can break him, you can." Tifa didn't fully believe that until it came out of her own mouth.

Yuffie smiled, "Thanks Teef." She flipped back her straight, short hair. "Sorry I was being a bitch before. You and Cloud…you know you're made for each other, right?"

"It isn't that easy…" Tifa huffed.

"Oh sure it is! You just need a little motivation." The ninja suddenly grinned, a brilliant idea bubbling in her brain. "You wanna make a bet?"

"About who'll win?"

"No…something a little more _interesting._" Yuffie turned Tifa around, facing her towards Cloud's direction. "You want him, right?"

Tifa immediately flushed, "…Yuffie…"

"I'll take that as a reluctant yes…and if you look over there…" Yuffie pointed her head to Vincent, who was getting further details about the hunt from Reeve. "You'll see the guy I want."

She still wasn't getting it. Tifa turned herself away, focusing back to Cloud. "So?"

"So…" Yuffie had that mischievous grin on her face again, one that would always remind her of that time she lifted all their materia. "Why don't we go on our own hunt?"

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A/N:

Once again I want to thank everyone for reading. Reviews would be awesome, and I'll be sure to update soon!

-ASX


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:**

**Updates, updates, updates...oh, how I wish I were better at them. There was one point in my fanfiction life that I was good at updating...sorry that you're catching me now.**

**So...THANKS TO EVERYONE THAT'S READING THIS STORY. **

**And a special thanks to my two amazing reviewers:**

_**zenbon zakura and PsychopathicHeartbeat**_

**Thanks guys! You're comments mean so much to me! **

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There weren't that many rules, to either hunt really. Reeve's was simply a time limit, oh and a silent reminder not to kill or hurt the other teams. _Or partners_. She couldn't help but think that Vincent may have a little problem with that specific detail.

Which brought her to the second …hunt. She didn't really like thinking about it that way. Cloud wasn't just some animal to catch.

"_Well he does run away a lot_._"_

She still remembered Yuffie's toothy grin. The ninja was a little too excited about this, something that was bound to turn out into nothing. _What happened to the optimism?_

Maybe she was holding on to the idea of her and Cloud for so long that the actual reality of it seemed completely unlikely. It wasn't like the opportunity never arose. Before Meteorfall she practically spilled her guts out but all they did was just fall asleep outside. Then when Cloud contracted Geostigma, she finally thought they were going to be a family. And, yeah, they were a family. She just thought that maybe they would start to be a little more traditional.

_What do I tell him_?

Tifa watched him idly, sipping something out of a can. She could only hope it was beer. Tifa had no idea what to say, so she needed all the help she could get. "Hey."

Cloud smiled slightly and set down the can on the nearby picnic table, "Still worried?"

"No, no. Can't I just talk to you?"

The blond shrugged, "We haven't really 'just talked' in a while."

A part of her felt a jolt of pain. They hadn't been talking, not _really_. Sure, there was the occasional chitchat about Denzel's school or the delivery, but nothing really about themselves, nothing truly meaningful. "That's why."

"Huh?" Cloud turned to her, more focused.

"That's why I want to talk to you." She reached for his hand, but then thought differently, bringing her own hand back to her hair. "Be my partner?"

His blue eyes shone for a moment, but she quickly corrected herself, "For the hunt. Be my partner for the hunt?"

"What about Yuffie?"

Tifa smiled, "What about _Vincent_ is a better question."

"Yeah…I don't think he'll exactly agree to that."

She nodded, her smile fading swiftly from her face. Tifa turned to leave and report back to Yuffie when she felt the gentle tug on her wrist, "But I'll convince him." His smile, though soft and small, was incredibly contagious. "Yuffie's okay with this?"

"Surprisingly enough. Will you talk to Vincent?"

"Sure, Tifa." Cloud began to walk away, but quickly turned back, a new thought coming to him. "This was a good idea."

Her heart couldn't help but skip, "Yeah, you think?"

"Yeah. You're much easier to carry around than Vincent."

_Oh._ Tifa dropped the smile, "Glad I'm lighter baggage."

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He wasn't exactly sure how to go about this. He could be honest…well at least, with his own spin. _I feel like we're growing apart, and it's killing me_.

Maybe that was a bit too dramatic.

_I love her and think this is the absolute perfect time to tell her._

And that was a little too unbelievable.

"Vincent?"

The caped man turned towards him, a little glad to get away from a crowd of WRO employees congratulating him for his victory over Omega and Weis. His pale face moved towards Cloud, but he didn't move forward.

"Can I talk to you?"

Vincent seemed grateful to oblige, following Cloud away from the encircling fans to a more deserted section of the party. "Thank you."

"No problem." He handed the older man a beer can. "You may want to start drinking this."

Vincent smirked, "I wish it had that kind of effect on me. But should I be sitting down?"

_Probably. _ "This may seem kinda sudden, but Vincent…"

"You want to switch partners."

Cloud blinked, "How'd you know?"

"I saw you two talking. Though, I can't say I am really…"

"Yuffie's not so bad."

Vincent simply grunted.

"And she's a born materia hunter. You'll win."

He rolled his red eyes, not entirely convinced, "If I survive." Vincent crossed his arms, letting the wind sweep his cape gently back. "Cloud."

"Yeah?" His mind was already drifting to a week alone with Tifa. "If you need a favor Vincent, I'll…"

Vincent shook his head, "No favors. I just…" He cringed seeing an exuberant Yuffie jump up and down in front of Tifa. "…do not want to suffer for nothing."

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"Hold on!"

His hand fell back to his gun holster, but Vincent immediately stopped himself. _Relax. She did save your life_. Multiple times if he remembered correctly. Though hyperactive and stressful, Yuffie was, at least, reliable.

"Can you hold my shuriken?" Her grin was so wide, it looked disproportional on her tiny frame.

Vincent took the weapon cautiously, not really sure how to hold something so giant and with so many blades. "Yuffie, are you sure you want to carry this?"

"Yup, yup, right on my back. Don't worry about me, Vince." Yuffie grabbed the shuriken after placing a green piece of materia into her arm. "Unless…you like worrying about me."

He didn't bother to look at her or give her the satisfaction of a grimace. _Or worst a smile._ Vincent wasn't completely sure why she was doing this. Lately, Yuffie had been a little more….flirtatious around him than normal. Of course she was always overly friendly, but now her comments seemed to be a little less innocent.

It had started when he came back from fighting Omega. The ninja had helped him a lot back then, infiltrating Deepground, and not to mention saving him from Rosso. His mind flashed to the memory of his return, but he immediately dismissed it.

"Hellloooooo?" Yuffie waved a hand in front of his face, "It's unlike you to be distracted, Vince. Daydreaming?"

He had a weird urge to agree. "I wanted to know where you want to go first."

"Oh. Hmmm…well we're at WRO headquarters now. Maybe we could head to the old building where Rufus was hiding out?"

"He was at Healin Lodge, a couple miles outside of Midgar."

"Well then let's get going! No way am I letting the animals or love sick idiots beat us out of this one." Yuffie started walking and then turned back, smiling, "And besides. I wouldn't be the Great Ninja Yuffie, White Rose of Wutai, if I couldn't even win a _materia_ competition."

Her running pace threw Vincent back a little, but he quickly followed her.

She continued to shout while running, "WE'RE A HAVE A LITTLE DISADVANTAGE." The ninja huffed and turned back to Vincent, "Stupid Chocobo Head has a motorcycle. No chance you still have wings, huh?"

He shook his head apathetically, smirking a bit at the ninja's giant frown. "You're saying we'll lose because of that?"

"Hmph." Yuffie's frown quickly transformed into a smile, "Who said we'd lose? They're just making it a bit harder." Her hands fell on her hips and he couldn't help but stare at her cautiously. She walked up to him, more closely than he felt comfortable with. "Good thing I like a challenge."

* * *

**A/N:**

**I need to stop starting three stories at once. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed. And I sincerely mean that the more reviews I get, the better chance I update faster. So...maybe we can double the review count? That'd be awesome. These are some of my favorite people to write so please give me a reason to continue :D**

**Thanks guys!**

**-ASX  
**


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